Navy Yard shooting: AR-15, back in the news -- briefly

By Ben Brumfield, CNN

Updated 1359 GMT (2059 HKT) September 17, 2013

Photos: Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard30 photos

Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard – A police officer runs near the scene of the shooting rampage at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, September 16. Authorities said at least 12 people -- and the suspect -- were killed in the shooting.

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Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard – A U.S. Park Police officer stands guard near the scene of the shooting.

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Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard – Military security observes the scene from a nearby rooftop.

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Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard – The White House flies the U.S. flag at half-staff following the shooting.

Mass shooting at D.C. Navy Yard – Police block off a road leading to the Washington Navy Yard.

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Story highlights

Advocates for tighter gun laws don't want to put it in the hands of civilians

Gun ownership proponents say the solution lies in more guns, not fewer

The AR-15 originated as a U.S. Army rifle

It has been called the most popular rifle in America, and it briefly returned to the spotlight after Monday's shooting at the Navy Yard: the AR-15.

A U.S. law enforcement official said Monday that gunman Aaron Alexis unleashed a barrage of bullets using an AR-15, a rifle and a semi-automatic handgun. Authorities believed the AR-15 was used for most of the shooting, the official said. The news prompted Sen. Dianne Feinstein, one of the strongest proponents of a ban on assault weapons like the AR-15, to issue a statement the same day asking, "When will enough be enough?"

However, federal law enforcement sources told CNN Tuesday that authorities have recovered three weapons from the scene of the mass shooting, including one -- a shotgun -- that investigators believe Alexis brought in to the compound. The other two weapons, which sources say were handguns, may have been taken from guards at the Navy complex.

The sources, who have detailed knowledge of the investigation, cautioned that initial information that an AR-15 was used in the shootings may have been incorrect. It is believed that Alexis had rented an AR-15, but returned it before Monday morning's shootings. Authorities are still investigating precisely how many weapons Alexis had access to and when.

Regardless, the massacre pushed the AR-15 back into the gun-control debate. The weapon has been used in several other rampages that shocked the nation:

Photos: Navy Yard shooter 8 photos

Photos: Navy Yard shooter8 photos

Navy Yard gunman – The FBI identified Aaron Alexis, a 34-year-old military contractor from Texas, as the perpetrator of the shooting rampage at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday, September 16. Authorities said at least 12 people -- and Alexis -- were killed in the shooting.

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Navy Yard gunman – Two days before the shooting, Alexis spent "a couple hours" shooting at Sharpshooters Small Arms Range in northern Virginia before buying the Remington 870 shotgun -- after being approved by the federal background check -- and a small amount of ammunition, the store's attorney, J. Michael Slocum, said.

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Navy Yard gunman – Alexis appears to have had sporadic run-ins with the law, dating to at least 2004. Authorities are still searching for more information about him, and they're asking the public for help.

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Navy Yard gunman – CNN obtained a series of images of Alexis from Kristi Suthamtewakul, the wife of his friend and former roommate Nutpisit Suthamtewakul, owner of the Happy Bowl Thai restaurant in Fort Worth, Texas, where Alexis used to work.

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Navy Yard gunman – Nutpisit Suthamtewakul reeled at the news that Alexis was involved in the rampage at the Navy Yard. "I can't believe he did this," he said. "He never showed any sign of violence."

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Navy Yard gunman – Alexis, who was from New York, served as a full-time Navy reservist between 2007 and 2011, according to military records.

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Navy Yard gunman – His last known address was outside Fort Worth, Texas.

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Navy Yard gunman – Authorities have not released a possible motive for the shooting.

"It's the preferred mass shooter's weapon of choice," added Lunsford, who was wounded by Maj. Nidal Hasan during the Ft. Hood shooting in 2009.

"But I don't see a logical reason why any civilian needs to have one of these killing machines."

Gun ownership proponents, on the other hand, say the solution lies in more guns, not fewer.

That's precisely the point CNN commentator and pro-gun activist Ben Ferguson made to Morgan.

Armed security guards aren't enough, he said. Once a gunman gets past them, they are no longer effective.

"When you allow a military base to be infiltrated by an individual like this... at that point he has free rein," Ferguson said.

Had the contractor and civilians working in the Navy Yard been armed, they could have gunned down the gunman and stopped the shooting quickly.

Morgan, who has dedicated many hours of his show to gun violence in the United States, did not seem hopeful that there will be a resolution soon to the controversial issue, even after the latest slaughter.

"I want the day to come where we don't have to have this ridiculous debate time and again in America," he said in frustration. "I just cannot have this debate anymore. It is ridiculous."

Efficient but deadly

The AR-15 is an efficient killing machine that originated as a U.S. Army rifle, military documents say. At the time, it was a fully automatic weapon.

An AR-15 is usually capable of firing a rate of 45 rounds per minute in semi-automatic mode.

Under the 1994 federal ban on such weapons, buying some variants of new AR-15s was against the law. The ban expired in 2004.

It's easy to get an AR-15. They can be purchased online or in a gun store. Online purchases are sent to a gun store for pick-up and a background check is still required.

Early Tuesday, one online retailer had a special running: Plunk down $999, and it can be delivered to the gun retailer of your choice in 10 days.

Political deadlock

The gunfire in the nation's capital quickly drew echoes from Washington politicians.

Some, like Feinstein, renewed their calls for restrictions on semi-automatic weapons.

The California Democrat, one of the strongest proponents of a ban on assault rifles, called for Congressional action. "We must do more to stop this endless loss of life," she said.

The new mass shooting is nothing new, bemoaned Democratic Sen. Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia. "We are becoming far too familiar with senseless, tragic violence. This is the seventh shooting since 2009, and these repeated incidents demand our attention," he said.

But their words will likely fade away, said Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. The broad support for gun ownership in Congress is too strong.

He doesn't think the shooting will be enough to sway the 60 votes a gun control measure would need to break a Republican filibuster.

Efforts to push gun control legislation through Congress led by Vice President Joe Biden after the Sandy Hook tragedy have run aground.

The National Rifle Association did not respond to a request for comment Monday. The gun rights organization has typically not responded to similar shootings immediately.

Months after apologizing for overeager users fingering innocent people as potential suspects in the wake of the Boston Marathon bombings, Reddit shut down a section devoted to chasing down the Washington Navy Yard shooter.